Advertising-vehicle.



No. 862,904. l PATENTED AUG. 1a, 1907.

' W. A. HARRISON. ADVERTISING VEHICLE.

APELIGATION FILED APB. 9,1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTED AUG. 13, 1907.

W. A. HARRISON. ADVERTISING VEHICLE.

APPLIGATION FILED APR.9,1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WZZILam/arr'fom I kwin/i9@ UNITED STATES WILLIAM ASQUITH HARRISON, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ADVERTISING-VEHICLE Application filed April 9, 1906. Serial No. 310,718-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM AsQUrTH HARRISON, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State oi New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Advertising- Vehicles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in advertising vehicles and particularly to that type employing changeable exhibitors of a novel and attractive character, which are within the control of the driver and which are designed to attract the attention of the public to advertising matter of any desired character.

The essential object of the invention is to provide a new, useful and unique advertising vehicle provided with changeable exhibitors employing advertising matter of an amusing, or sensational character, such as movable objects designed to be suddenly projected by unseen instrumentalities while the vehicle is in progress, or at a standstill, whereby the attention of the passing public will be drawn to the objects and to the various advertisements which they are intended to display; also to provide the vehicle with means for emitting musical sounds or other noises designed to further attract the attention of the public to the vehicle and its advertising features. v

My invention consists of the parts and the constructions, arrangements and combinations of parts which I will hereinafter describe and claim.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification and in which similar letters of reference indicate like parts,-Figure l, is a longitudinal sectional view of an advertising vehicle embodying the salient features of my invention. Fig. 2, is an end view. Fig. 3, illustrates a projecting device of modified form. Fig. 4, is a detail illustrating a modification to be referred to. Fig. 5 is a detail of the valve.

In carrying out my invention I construct the vehicle with any of the usual or desired formsof running gear comprising the front and rear wheels A, B, and appropriate axles Af, B/, therefor, The vehicle may, also, have its front gear provided with a center frame B2 to which a shaft B3 is adjustably connected. This shaft is of peculiar arrangement. which arches upward and extends along the back of the horse and is provided with some appropriate form of saddle-like harness attachment B4 which fits over the horses withers and by which the animal may be satisfactorily harnessed to the vehicle. The character of this harness is unimportant and forms no essential part of my invention, it being only necessary that some appropriate harness be employed to attach the horse to the shaft, which shaft is adjustable to horses of different Speceation o f Letters Patent.

It is preferably a single shaft Patented Aug. 13, 1907.

heights by means of a bolt l0, engageable with any one of a series of holes 12, in the lower rear end of the shaft.

-This shaft I purpose shall be supplied with some device or movable object bearing subject-matter of an advertising or attractive character, said device being capable of sudden projection or retraction by suitable means under the manipulation of an unseen driver or occupant within the vehicle; and a device suitable for which purpose I will hereinafter describe.

The body of the vehicle will be suitably constructed and will be closed on the sides, iront and back except for such doors or entrances a and window openings a/ as may be necessary, said doors being designed for the inlet and exit of the driver who, when the vehicle is in use, may accupy the seat E which is so disposed that ,the occupant may readily control the horse as well as the various movable devices with which the vehicle is supplied. In the form of wagon herein shown, the sides converge from the bottom upwards said sides being of any suitable material and being adapted for the display of advertising matter. If the sides are stationary as in Fig. l, the advertisements thereon will be of a permanent character, and if the sides are composed of endless aprons W as shown in Fig. 4, these may have a variety of advertising matter of a constantly changing character, as is well known in this art. The contracted top of the body I provide with a longitudinally extending opening b through which appropriate devices may be projected into view and retracted out of sight at the will of the unseen occupant of the vehicle. These projecting devices may be of any desired number and arrangement, but a very suitable type is shown in Figs. 1 and 3 wherein the said devices consist of a seiies of bars c arranged to cross each other and pivoted together at their ends and also at their points of crossing to constitute a lazy-tongs which enables the bars to fold down upon each other to withdraw the device into the open top of the vehicle, and which, when the lowermost bars of the series are drawn towards each other, cause the bars to turn about their pivotal centers and extend the device and project it suddenly through the opening in the top of the vehicle. This same type of device is shown connected with the shaft directly over the back of the horse, and the said devices are so arranged that any one or more of them may be manipulated at the pleasure of the occupant of the vehicle. The character of the advertisement which these projecting devices are intended to carry may vary as will be readily understood. For instance, over the outer sides of the lazy-tongs may be secured plates or sheets D of appropiiate material forming sign boards containing printed matter, pictures, symbols or other subject-matter of a nature which will attract the attention of the passers-by. The character of the advertisement to be em- I ployed may vary to an almost unlimited degree, and the sign boards may be readily removable whereby an occul pant ol the vehicle may quickly remove one and substitute another after the i'ormer has been displayed and then removed from observation by the retraction of the lazy-tongs within the vehicle.

Instead of the sign boards, I may associate with the lazy-tong device some form of comical or other ligure, symbol etc. For instance I may attach to each side of the lazy-tongs a bag-like structures of rubber or other air-tight and expansible character' painted to represent some comical character, these bags being connected with a tube d adapted to convey air under pressure whereby when the lazy-tongs is projected to appear through the root' of the vehicle, the air pressure is admitted to the bags and the ligure which the bags represent will instantly become iniiated and rendered grotesque by proportions which they are made to assume. The character of the iignres represented by the bags may be varied to an almost unlimited extent as it is only necessary to make whatever' ligure is used of an inflatable type and attach it to the lazy tongs which latter thereby furnishes the support for the ligure and is the medium by which said figure is made to suddenly appear and disappear.

In order that the vehicle may carry suilicient compressed air in storage to iniate the iigures at will, I provide the vehicle with an air compressor F oi any of the well known and approved forms, and I operate this compressor by power derived from a suitable motor oi which the rear axle of the vehicle may be a type, the

connection being through the medium of a sprocket wheel e on said axle and a chain f extending therefrom to a sprocket wheel g on a crank shaft h to which the piston rod i of the compressor F is connected. The air compressed in the compressor is delivered by a suitable pipe connection l into a storage tank G on the vehicle, and the pipe (l leads from this tank and connects with the inflatable bag or ligure and has a controlling cock m within easy reach ol the occupant ol the vehicle whereby the bag or ligure may be inflated at will. Ordinarily, the weight ol the lazy-tongs7 will be suiiicient to retract them alter they have been projected, but il a more positive return is required, I may employ springs n to facilitate the return movement. The character ol the controlling valve in the air supply pipes should also bc such that the air may be readily exhausted from the bag or inflated ligure when it is desired to collapse the figure preparatory to its disappearance with the lazy tongs into the open top ol the vehicle. An ordinary three-way valve may be used lor this purpose it desired. The interior ot the vehicle may also be supplied with instruments or devices designed to emit musical or other sounds-to attract the attention ol the public. These may be of any well known character suitable ior the purpose and may include an organ I-I which may be driven by any desired air` motor I or by power derived from the rear axle, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1.

The lazy-tones may be operated by any connections I may select'for that purpose, it being only necessary that somepower be called into play at the desired time to cause the lazy tongs to be expanded and projected into View above the vehicle.r One simple operating means lor the lazy-tongs is shown in Fig. l wherein suitable cords or connections P from the base members ol the bars c extend to suitable levers 1' which are arranged within easy reach of the occupant oi' the seat E. However' I do not limit myself to these or to any particular form of operating means. In fact, the lazy-tongs may be used ier advertising purposes aside lrom their association with a wheeled vehicle, For instance they may be connected with some iorm ol trame or harness L which will adapt them to be supported on the shoulders of a human being, as in Fig. 3, with a cord or connection s which may be-operated to project and retract the device at pleasure in the manner substantially as before described.

The device of Fig. 3 may have its advertisements displayed upon a curtain adapted to be wound and unwound upon a roller u, suitably mounted in the frame or harness L. The well known spring-actuated curtain roller may serve for this purpose. The sign boards belore referred to as being carried by the lazy-tongs may represent black. boards, upon which an operator standing on the roof or top of the wagon may draw pictures, write advertisements, etc. In order, also, that a conspicuous public demonstration of any goods to be advertised or brought to the attention ot the public may be made, I arrange along the sides of the vehicle at the bottom of the sloping sides, suitable platforms M upon which an operator may stand in making his demonstration, or the distribution of samples, or circulars or other advertising matter relating thereto. At the end of the vehicle I may also arrange a screen or irame T upon which moving pictures or other subjectmatter may be displayed at night.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is.-

1. A vehicle body having closed sides and an opening'in its top, in combination with a double series of levers so arranged that the levers oi' one series cross those of the other series said levers being pivotally connected at their ends and also at their points of crossing, an expansible and eontractible advertising element carried by said levers and means connecting with the levers and operable to cause said element to appear' and disappear' through the open top of said body.

2. A vehicle body having closed sides and ends and an opening in its top, in combination with a double series of levers snpportedvin said body and pivotally connected to form a lazy-tongs, an expansible and contractible member carried hy said lazy-tongs and having advertising characteristics, and means including operating levers and connections therefrom to the lazy-tongs whereby the latter is operated to canse said member to appear and disappear through the open top of said body.

A vehicle having a body and running gear, a single shaft connected to the vehicle and arching` upwardly and adapted to extend along the back of the animal, a vertically projecting and retracting mechanism supported on the shaft, a member carried by the projecting and retractingl mechanism and having suitable advertising characteristics,` and means whereby said projecting and retracting mechanism may be operated from the vehicle to cause said member to be projected and retracted relative to said shaft.

4. An advertising vehicle having a body with upwardly converging sides bearing advertising matter said body having a slot in its top, an advertising element normally concealed within said body in line below saidslot, and means operable from said vehicle to cause said element to appear and disappear through said slot.

An advertising vehicle having a body closed at the sides and ends and having, a slot or opening, an expansible and contractible device within the body, an intlatable iig;A ure carried by said device and normally deflated, means for operating said device to cause said ligure to appear and disappearthrough said slot or opening, and means adapted to inflate the figure after it has been projected.

6. An'advertising vehicle having a body closed at the sides and ends and having a slot or opening, a lazy-tongs mounted in the body and carrying a normally deflated ligure, means for operating the lazy-tongsy a reservoir on the vehicle containing a iluid under pressure, and controllable connections between the reservoir and said ligure whereby the latter may be inflated.

T. An advertising vehicle having` a body with an opening an expansible and contractible device Within said bodyy au inflatable figure carried by ,said device and normally deilated, means for operating said device to cause said iigure to appear and disappear through said opening, an air compressor on the vehicle, a reservoir connected thereto and serving; to store compressed air, controllable connec tions between the reservoir and the figure whereby the latter may be intlated, and means for operating the com pressor.

S. An advertising vehicle having a body and normally concealed devices having operating mechanisms, an air compressor upon the vehicle and means for operating the compressoiy' a reservoir connecting with the compressor and adapted as a holder for the compressed air, and connections between the said devices and the reservoir.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribingl witnesses.

WILLIAM ASQUITH HARRISON.

Witnesses BERNARD COAKLEY, .IosnrH RINGLER. 

